Prepare For Glory
by IthilielCuivienien
Summary: 300 Xover, 300 x LotR. Leonidas faces his death on the battlefield. But is it really the end?
1. Glory

Disclaimer: I own neither 300 nor the other one ( I won't say with what story the Xover is... you'll see it soon enough g)

A/N: I know it's a bit short, but I just had to stop there... it fitted so well... I try to update soon

**Prepar****e For Glory**

**1. Glory**

„My Queen... my wife... my love…"

Leonidas stares at the distant archers. The sun is rising behind them, submerging everything in brilliant golden light.

Such brilliant light… and it is illuminating such a gruesome sight. The bodies of his loyal men lie around him and the ground is steeped in red blood. So much blood… so much death.

They were lying there because of him, because he had led them here. He had asked them and they had followed him.

He knows that there was no choice for him, that there was no other way to stop Persia's army from crushing Sparta. They all had known that.

And now they are lying here on the blood-soaked ground, dead. They did not surrender, they did not retreat. They chose glory.

Leonidas lifts up his arms to welcome death. A beautiful death. Glory.

His last thought is for his love. He will never see her again, never see her smile again, never touch her again… never see his son again. He closes his eyes in a short prayer for their safety, then he opens them again and stares defiantly towards the Persian archers.

They fire – their arrows block out the sun.

Darkness.


	2. Awakening

Three guesses as to the fandom of the Xover! g

**2. Awakening**

Velvet darkness surrounded him. There was no sound. He was lying on soft grass.

Grass?

Slowly, Leonidas opened his eyes. All he could see was the clear blue sky above him.

Memory returned.

The Persian arrows had blocked out the sun… pain, then nothing.

He was dead. He had to be. There was no other explanation.

The arrows had hit him and he had died. No-one could have survived all those arrows.

Carefully he sat up and looked around.

He had been lying on a green field, surrounded by his men. None of them had any wounds, they appeared to be sleeping. No wounds, no blood, their weapons in their arms. From behind the nearby hills sounds of battle could be heard and the ground was shaking.

Where were they? What had happened? Was this Hades? Was this the after-life?

And if this was Hades, why was there a battle nearby? For it had to be a battle, Leonidas had been in enough to regconize that immediately. It had to be quite a huge battle, too, judging by the way the ground was shaking.

One by one his brothers in war woke up.

They were confused and got up slowly. Soon Leonidas, King of Sparta, was standing in the middle of his 300 brave Spartans.

"What is the meaning of this? Where are we?" asked the captain.

"I do not know."

Leonidas gazed into the direction where the battle-sounds could be heard from. He made a decision. No matter how they had ended up here, they would not stand by idly while there was fighting going on. They were Spartans after all.

"Let's find out what battle this is."

He turned and leads his men southwards.

The Spartans marched until they could see a vast battlefield in front of a great white city at the foot of the mountains.

The city was under siege and her defenders were few while the attackers were many and had big warbeasts.

"Are these Persian war-beasts?" Stelios wondered.

"They do look like them," Astinos agreed. "And the invaders remind me of the Immortals and other warriors of Xerxes."

"They do look similar to the Persian army," Leonidas said and made a decision.

Perhaps they were here for a reason, perhaps the Gods had sent them here to fight. Perhaps not. He only knew that a small army of men was defending itself agains a superior force of hideous monsters. He could not just stand by and watch and do nothing. That would go against everything he had been taught, everything he had ever believed in.

"Spartans!"

As one the 300 fell into a phalanx formation and marched towards the battle.

Closer and closer they came and at last they faced the Persian-like army.

"Hold your position", Leonidas instructed and waited.

Now they would see what would happen.


	3. Battle Again

Thank you for all of your nice reviews!

And yes, they landed in Middle-earth g

Amy Beth McK: I don't really have a very good explanation yet, but I'll think of something (I hope). And I don't know yet if there will be a meeting of Dilios and Faramir…

JustBFree: Thank you! And who knows? Maybe they will see each other again…

spedclass: Thank you! I'll try my best to update soon.

melgar: g nice line…

Lord OF Illusion: Thank you! And I do so agree with you!

pyroSlytherin: Yes, of course Lord of the Rings…

**3. Battle Again**

Gothmog was surprised to see more warriors coming to Gondor's aid. They were strange warriors: They wore no real armour, only their shields and helmets protected them, and every one of them wore a crimson cloak.

Now they were marching towards the Orcs in a disciplined battle formation.

Then they stopped and positioned their shields in front of them, their spears above them.

With an angry scream Gothmog gave the sign to attack these strange newcomers. If they had a death wish, who was he to deny them? What could a mere 300 do against Mordor's vast armies?

---

The dark fighters charged the Spartans who stood their ground.

"Push!"

With their shield they pushed the foremost enemies away and killed them with their spears. On Leonidas' command, the Spartans spread and advanced.

With spear, shield and sword they fought. They showed no mercy, they showed no hesitation. They were Spartans. They were born to fight on the battlefield.

The Spartans fought bravely, but the number of the enemy was very great and there was not much hope for victory.

The Spartans were pressed upon hard and gave their best, taking many Orcs and Haradrim down.

Some of Leonidas warriors fell, but their deaths only seemed to make the rest of the 300 fight harder.

Just when Leonidas thought the battle lost, he could hear clear horns ringing over the battlefield. A fresh breeze came out of the south and he could see a great banner being unfurled upon a nearing ship. A silver tree with seven stars and a crown upon a black field. He did not know what this banner meant, but the defenders of the city rejoiced at seeing the standard, therefore he deduced that it could not mean anything bad.

"Spartans!"

Upon his command the hoplites renewed their effort and threw themselves into battle with newfound vigour.

Between the new attack from the south, the defenders of the city and the Spartans, the armies of Mordor didn't stand a chance.

One by one the Orcs fell victim to the Spartan spears or turned and fled.

Finally, Leonidas gave the sign to stop and the warriors fell into position behind him.

The king stood tall and proud in front of his men and waited for the other leaders to approach them.


	4. After The Battle

I'm really sorry I took so long to update, but I had a terrible writer's block. I'll do my best to post the next chapter sooner!

And thank you for all your nice reviews! hands out Spartan-shaped cookies

**1****4. After the battle**

Aragorn and Éomer stood together in the middle of the battlefield.

"I said we would meet again my friend," the Ranger from the North said.

"I have not doubted your word, yet I feared that you would not make it in time. The days have been dark and devoid of hope."

"There is always hope," answered Aragorn. "Who are these red-cloaked warriors? I have never seen their like before."

"You do not know them?" Éomer asked, astounded. "I had thought it was you who sent them."

"I know them not."

"Then who are they?" asked the King of Rohan.

"Let us ride to meet them and find out," Aragorn decided.

So the heir of Isildur and the new King of Rohan sat out with Prince Imrahil of Dol Amroth, Legolas the Elf and Gimli the Dwarf to meet the small group of Spartan warriors.

Meanwhile, the Spartans had tended their wounded and gathered their dead. Now they were standing in a loose battle formation behind their king. He alone had not moved since the battle had ended. He had stood there and watched the others across the ruined land.

Who were these people? They looked human, at least. Except, perhaps, for the small one. The dark haired man and the dark blonde one seemed to know each other. Perhaps they had fought together before. From the way the others treated him, Leonidas thought that the dark haired man was the highest ranking among them.

Perhaps their king or their general. He would definetly be the one to keep an eye on.

Now they were slowly making their way towards them. Leonidas turned to look at his men.

"They do not appear to be threatening us. We will not attack until they do so."

The fact that they should do nothing without his order was left unsaid. It did not need to be mentioned. They were Spartans after all.

Calmly, Leonidas turned again to face the nearing strangers.


	5. Meeting

Thank you all so much for your reviews! I am really sorry, that it took me so long to post this, but this meeting was so hard to write and I wanted it to be 'realistic'... well, in character at least. I really hope I'll be able to post the next apter sooner, but this turn out to be quite hard to write... and I really want to get everything right. But I will definitly continue writing.

**5. Meeting **

Aragorn rode up to the waiting Spartans. He stopped in front of their leader, at a polite distance.

"Greetings, strangers. I do not know who you might be, but I thank you for your aid in this battle."

Leonidas regarded the dark haired man with a steady gaze. Then he nodded slowly.

"It has been a pleasure fighting against these Persian creatures. I am King Leonidas of Sparta."

"Sparta?" Éomer asked. "I have not heard of this place."

Aragorn beckoned him to be silent.

"I am Aragorn, Isildur's heir of Gondor. I welcome you and your warriors and offer you hospitality, he said, somewhat weary of these men. He also had not heard of this place called Sparta before, but they seemed friendly and had aided them in battle.

Leonidas accepted and after further introductions, the Spartans followed Aragorn to the Gates of the White City.

A temporary camp, a small tent city, had been erected in front of the Gates. The Spartans made their own camp on the fringes of the larger one.

While they had done this, evening had fallen and they gathered around a small fire. Aragorn had been true to his promise of hospitality and provided them with food and drink.

The Spartans were now celebrating their victory, with Dilios recounting parts of the battle – only one was silent. Leonidas did not join his men, he sat slightly apart from them and gazed into the flames.

There were so many questions he wanted to ask. Where exactly were they? He had not recognized the name Gondor and the land seemed completely unfamiliar to him. And, more important, how had they come here?


	6. Remember Me

Thank you all so much for your great Reviews! I really appreciate the feedback.

I have to apologise for the delay... I just had too much to do at university... I hope I can get the next chapter up sooner, but sadly, I can't promise anything...

**6. Remember Me**

Midnight had passed and the only ones still awake were the guards – and the king of Sparta.

Leonidas still sat on the edge of their camp, staring into the dark.

He had though long about their situation, but then his thoughts had turned down a different road.

In his mind he could see her – he could see her laughing, he could see her holding their son, he could see her looking at him with such love and sadness, just like she he had left.

Where was she now? What was she doing? Did she already know what had happened? Because whatever had happened to him and his men, Leonidas knew deep down in his heart that they would not be coming back. He had known it from the moment he decided to march towards the Persian army. He had known it when he had said good-bye to Gorgo. And she had known it, too.

If he just closed his eyes, he would see her again – standing in the fields, smiling. Could she see him as well?

What would happen to his city now? Would Sparta fall? Had everything been in vain?

No, he refused to belief this. He had done what needed to be done, to save Sparta. They had bought the other Greeks enough time… surely now all the cities would go to war?

Leonidas' thoughts were interrupted by a soft voice.

"King Leonidas? Will you walk with me for a bit?"  
He looked up to see the Lord Aragorn standing beside him. Slowly the king of Sparta got up and nodded.

Together the two men walked away from the camp. When they were no longer within hearing distance, Aragorn turned towards the Spartan.

"We may have won one battle, but the war has just begun. We stand against a powerful enemy. The help of you and your men would be very much appreciated. But I suppose you have some questions before you would want to make any decisions?"

Leonidas smiled slightly.

"Indeed I have."


	7. Answers

Thank you all for your wonderful reviews! They really make my day!

I am sorry, but the next update won't cme until the middle/end of December... I have so much to do for university at the moment (essays, exams) that I just won't find the time for it. But I definitely will continue.

**7. Answers**

"It all began a long time ago, with the forging of the Rings of Power by the Elves. Three they made for themselves, seven for the Dwarf Lords and nine for the Lords of mortal men," Aragorn began.

Leonidas and he were standing out of hearing distance of the camp at the foot of the White City.

"The Dark Lord Sauron wanted the power of the Elven rings for himself and forged a Master Ring. One Ring to control all the others. One by one they fell under his sway, only the Elves managed to resist him. There was a long and terrible war waged against the Dark Lord and in the end it was only by shear luck that it was won and Sauron destroyed.

But the Ring was not destroyed. It continued to exist and with it, Sauron's spirit also remained in this world.

Now, the One Ring has been found again and Sauron has grown stronger over the years. He searches for the Ring, but so far he has not been able to truly find it. He believes that the Ring is here, in Gondor, which is one of the reasons why he is concentrating his forces on us, trying to destroy us.

So far we have survived, so far we have won, if only barely. But our time draws to an end, and if we fall, the rest of Middle-earth will soon follow, and all the lands will be covered in darkness."

For some time no-one said anything.

"So this Sauron must not find the Ring," Leonidas said. "Where is it then? Is it safe?"

Aragorn smiled sadly. "I believe so. Some of our allies are attempting to destroy it and it is our job now to draw Saurons attention to us so that he may be blind to other things." He was not quite sure why, but he did trust the Spartan. Even the twins had told him that they thought him trustworthy, and that was no meagre praise from them after such a short time.

"How do you plan to get his attention?", Leonidas now asked, deep in thought.

"We are gathering our armies on the morrow and will set out for Mordor, the stronghold of Sauron."

Leonidas nodded. "And I suppose he has a large army there at his command?"

He had been thinking about the things the Dunedain had told him and he had reached an decision. Now he only had to make sure it was the right one.

"Yes," Aragorn nodded. "What you have seen on the Fields of the Pelennor yesterday was only a small portion of his vast forces. It would be suicide to attack him."

"My men and I will come with you if you would allow us to. This Sauron sound too much like Xerxes for my liking - he has to be stopped."

Aragorn smiled with relief. "I had hoped you would say this. Your men are valiant fighters and will be a great asset to our forces. But there is little hope for us."

Leonidas laughed then.

"That does not matter. Honourable death on the battlefield is the greatest glory a Spartan can achieve."

'And it would not be the first suicide misson we engaged in', he thought to himself as he shook hands with the other king to seal his promise.


	8. To The Black Gate

I'm really sorry, it took me so long to update, but I had a lot to do and I wanted the chapter to be a good one (I'll try to have the next one ready as soon as possible!)

And thank you so much for all your great reviews! hug You really make my day!

**8. To The Black Gate**

So the Spartans marched with the host of the free people of Middle-earth to the Morannon. Their bright red cloaks stood out against the green of the Rohirrim, the grey of the Dúnedain, the silver and black of the Gondorians and the blue of the people of Dol Amroth.

Day after day they marched and as they came further north, the land became more desolate.

The sky was full of grey clouds and the sun was shrouded in mist.

Slowly, a feeling of despair begann to creep on the men.

A harsh shriek sounded above them and Aragorn looked up.

"Nazgul. They are watching us."

Leonidas, too, had seen the winged creatures.

"What are they?", he asked.

"They were once kings of men. Sauron's dark magic corupted them and now they are wraiths, trapped between the world of the living and the dead. They are Sauron's most feared servants, for they are almost impossible to kill.", said Aragorn.

The Spartan king risked another glance at the sky. Two black shapes were circling high above them and just then another shriek sounded through the quiet twilight.

Leonidas repressed a shudder. These were foul creatures indeed.

Closer and closer they drew towards the Black Gate of Mordor and already they had lost some men. A few days ago, Aragorn had sent the faint hearted back to guard the roads of Ithilien. Some of the men from Gondor, Dol Amroth and Rohan had turned back then, but not a single one of the Dúnedain or the Spartans.

Now they were approaching the Black Gate. It guarded the only pass through the dark and steep mountains surrounding Mordor and was bordered by two high towers. The gate itself looked uninviting and gloomy with its dark and sharp metal panelling.

Aragorn led his men a bit away from the Gate and they made camp at the foot of the grey hills to the north-east of the Morannon. It was a quiet and subdued camp and they trippled the guards.

Leonidas was staring into the flames of the small campfire. Tomorrow would be the decisive battle.

The irony of the situation did not escape his notice that they would now fight at the Black Gate, when, just some days ago, they had defended the Hot Gates. Only this time, they would not be the defenders, they would be the ones to attack.

Or maybe not. From what Aragorn had told him, this Sauron was every bit as arrogant as Xerxes. Maybe he would make it easy for them and have his army march out, instead of just holding the gate.

'So let us hope, that our enemy is arrogant enough to fall for it… to make a rash decision out of pride', Leonidas thought.

If they were to arrange themselves around the foot of the hills, building an impenetrable phalanx… they could hold their position for days… maybe it would be long enough…

With a silent nod to his friend Dilios, the king of Sparta got up and went to find the Lord Aragorn. They should use the remaining hours to discuss strategy.


	9. The Road To Glory Is Lined In Red

Watching 300 is apparently very inspiring...

Thank you all so much for your wonderful reviews! I love you all!

A/N: I really hope the greek characters are depicted in the right way... and I also have to admit that I don't know any Greek,I just looked this up on the internet, so I'll apologize for any mistakes I might have made.

Update: Thanks to Dr.Lust for helping with the Greek!

**9. The Road To Glory Is Lined In Red…**

In the early morning light, the men of the west broke up their camp and the captains assembled their host at the foot of the hills.

King Leonidas accompanied the Lord Aragorn, King Éomer, Lord Imrahil and the wizard Gandalf as they rode up to the menacing black gate.

About 50 metres in front of the huge metal doors, they stopped and Aragorn called out.

"Let the Lord of the Black Land come forth! Justice shall be done upon him! Come forth!"

For some time nothing happened. Then the black gate slowly opened a bit and a single rider came forth, followed by a large group of orcs.

"Who dares to address the Dark Lord as if he were his equal?" the Mouth of Sauron asked arrogantly.

"Have you come to beg for forgiveness?"

Befor Aragorn or Gandalf could say anything, Leonidas spoke.

"I do not negotiate with the likes of you. Go tell your master that he is facing free men and not mindless slaves! And as long as just a single Spartan is still alive, will we continue to fight him!"

"Then you are doomed!", the messenger called out and laughed. "This is your last chance! Surrender and accept the Dark Lord's terms or face annihilation!"

"We will not accept any term Sauron might make!", called Aragorn. "Go back to the hell you came from!"

Then he gave the signal to return to their army.

Now the Black Gate was opening further, to the dark beating of drums, and a vast army started to advance from the plains of Udûn.

"By all that you hold dear on this good earth, I bid you, stand, Men of the West!" Aragorn called out and raised his sword.

"προπαρασκευαστείτε για κλέος!" (1), Leonidas called with raised spear.

"κλέος!" (2), sounded the Spartan answer over the battlefield and as one the threehundred fell into their position.

An orc horn was heard from the hills and suddenly another army approached them from the back. They were surrounded. Fortunately, Aragorn and Leonidas had discussed such a possibility the day before, so the Rohirrim that made up the rear were prepared. They turned around to face the advancing orcs and Easterlings.

The battle had begun.

Spears were shattered, shields splintered and the ground was painted red with blood.

The host of the west fought valliantly, none more valliantly that the Dúnedain and the Spartans.

But they were still losing.

Nazgûl from Mordor had joined the fight not long after the beginning, spreading terror among the fighting men, sweeping down and ripping their prey to pieces.

With a mighty cry, Astinos hurled his spear at the hooded figure of an approaching Nazgûl. The wraith screeched and fell to the ground, while his riderless steed fled. The men cheered, but there were still seven more.

"Trolls! Trolls are coming!", someone screamed.

Suddenly Leonidas found himself in front of a huge creature, a mountain troll with a great hammer. His shield barely survived the impact the crude weapon made. The Spartan king slashed out at the beast and had just enough tme to avoid the next hammer strike.

Again he attacked, this time with a spear he had pulled out of a dead orc.

With a mighty blow, Leonidas, thrust at the troll, impaling him right throuhg the heart.

Just as the creature fell down, the king heard a loud cry over the battlefield.

"The eagles! The eagles are coming!"

He glanced up to see several huge birds of prey attacking the remaining Nazgûl. With a triumphant scream he continued to fight.

The Nazgûl fled and the hosts of Mordor trembled. A new hope filled the captains of the west and Gandalf cried out with a clear voice:

"Stand, Men of the West! Stand and wait! This is the hour of doom!"

And the ground shook, and the Towers of the Teeth trembled, and the Black Gate crashed down. A black cloud streaked with fire darkened the skye above Mordor, and the air was filled with a loud rumbling roar.

"The realm of Sauron has ended!" cried Aragorn. "The Ringbearer has fulfilled his quest!"

(1) Prepare for glory!

(2) Glory!


	10. Aftermath

Thank you for your nice reviews! This is, sadly, the last but one chapter.

Dr.Lust: Thank you for your help with the Greek! I just corrected it.

**10. Aftermath **

After the Fall of Sauron, the forces of Mordor were overcome with fear and fled before the fierce onslaught of the host of the west.

"Victory! Victory! Sauron is defeated!"

Cries of victory could be heard everywhere on the field and the men were filled with new hope. They had won!

After the battle was over, Leonidas let his gaze wander over the battlefield. Here and there he could see the red cloak of a Spartan among the many dead.

They had lost many brave warriors, but their enemy had lost countless more. Against all hope they had won. The gods must have been smiling on them.

A weary and bloody Aragorn came up to the Spartan king.

"We have won, my friend." He stood for a while beside Leonidas, both silent.

"We should gather our dead and bury them as they deserve," the Spartan finally said.

Aragorn nodded and before he left, he turned back and said softly.

"We could not have done it without your brave warriors. I thank you for your help."

Leonidas nodded once.

"It was an honour to fight at your side."

It took them the rest of the day and all of the next one to gather their dead and bury them. More than half of the Spartans had fallen.

Gandalf had brought back the Ringbearers, they were alive but unconscious.

They left the Black Gate on the second day after the battle and started to march south to the Fields of Cormallen where they set up a more permanent camp.

There the wounded were tended and the weary rested.

On the sixth of Gwirith, a great celebration was held, to honour the Ringbearers and to remember the warrior that had fallen in the war against Sauron.

There Leonidas and the Spartans were again thanked for their support and many praised their valour.

Leonidas raised his mug in remembrance of the fallen.

"Hail the victorious dead!"

The celebrations lasted well into the night.

After some time, while the others were still feasting, Leonidas got up and went to the edges of the camp. Something seemed to be calling him into the surrounding woods.

He was wary of this feeling, but he couldn't sense any ill intent, so he slowly walked into the shadowy woods.

There, in a small clearing among the trees, stood a tall and beautiful woman with long dark hair in the starlight. Nightingales sung around her.

She was waiting for the king of Sparta to come to her.

(A/N: Whoever can guess who that is, gets the next chapter dedicated to him!)


	11. The End

Thank you so much for all your Reviews! I hope you like the ending of the story...

Sadly, no-one guessed the woman's indentity... but then again, it was not exactly easy... and not everyone know the Silmarillion that well... the woman is Melian the Maia, wife of Elu Thingol and mother of Lúthien. 

**11. The End**

Melian stood motionless under the soft starlight, waiting for the Spartan king.

Slowly Leonidas walked towards the grey clad woman.

A few metres away from her he stopped.

"Who are you, Lady?" he asked quietly.

"I have had many names, but you may call me Melian," the woman said in a soft and melodic voice. "Walk with me."

The king did as she asked him and followed her slowly through the starlit woods.

"You are a long way from home, Spartan." She said finally.

Leonidas nodded.

"I know. But it's not as if I could do anything about it, or is it?"

Melian sadly shook her head.

"No. You died and it is not within my power to send you back."

The Maia was silent for a while.

"You and your men have been sent here by the Valar, to aid the free people of Middle-earth in their fight for freedom. You have succeeded better than anyone could have hoped."

Leonidas bowed his head shortly in acknowledgment of the compliment and waited for her to continue.

"But your time here is at an end. This is not your world and you cannot stay any longer."

The king nodded. He had already guess as much.

"How shall we leave?"

Melian smiled softly.

"Gather your men and then come back to me."

Now Leonidas realised that they stood on the outskirts of the clearing where the others were still celebrating.

"I will." He said quietly and walked back to the feast.

Just a few quiet instructions were necessary to assmeble his men, but he had one more thing to do.

"My Lord Aragorn."

The soon-to-be king of Gondor looked up to see the Spartan standing near him with a solemn expression. He quickly excused himself and went to speak with Leonidas.

"We are leaving."

Aragorn nodded. He had been expecting something like this.

"Do you need anything? Provisions? You need only tell me and I will do everything in my power to grant your request."

Leonidas shok his head.

"I have everything I need. Farewell, my friend."

Aragorn bowed slightly.

"May the grace of the Valar be with you, mellon nin."

And with that, King Leonidas took his leave of the Lord Aragorn and led his men into the waiting twilight of the trees.

"My Lady."  
Melian smiled softly.

"Follow me."

The Spartans followed her deeper into the forest and soon they were surrounded by a dense mist.

Suddenly the mist parted.

They were standing on the edge of a golden field underneath a bright blue sky.

A lone woman was standing among the wheat, waiting.

"Gorgo," breathed Leonidas surprised.

"Welcome to the Elysian Fields," Melian said with a gentle smile before she stepped back into the mist that vanished with her.

THE END.

(A/N: The Elysian fields were the final resting place of the souls of the heroic and the virtuous in Greek mythology.)


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